Nicholas Campbell Biography

Critically acclaimed and multi-award winning actor Nicholas Campbell was born in Toronto and raised in Montreal. He studied pre-law at Queen's University in Kingston, but soon switched to English and Drama. He then spent five years in England, first at the London Drama Studio and then at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA). While there, he began acting in theater productions and even gained television acting experience with a guest appearance on the British TV series Bless This House before returning to North America.

Back home, Campbell divided his time between New York, Los Angeles and Toronto, and his early credits reflect that with appearances on Canadian (The Littlest Hobo) and American TV series (Airwolf, T.J. Hooker). Early feature films include the Hollywood blockbusters The Omen (1976) starring Gregory Peck, A Bridge Too Far (1977) starring Sean Connery and The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) starring Roger Moore.

Campbell received his first Genie nomination in 1982 for his supporting role in The Amateur (1981). That was followed with a second nod in 1983 for Killing 'em Softly (1982). The same year, he landed his first regular role in a series with The Hitchhiker, about a man who travels, meeting different people each week. In 1985, he played Nick Fox on ABC's short-lived crime series The Insiders. Just two years later, his fame increased when he played Michael on two seasons of the Global TV (shown on CBS late night in the U.S.) detective/comedy series Diamonds. Campbell's offbeat performance won him numerous fans, and he soon found himself unable to walk down the street without being recognized.

His first Gemini nomination came for his leading role as Bobby Kennedy in the mini-series Hoover vs. the Kennedys: The Second Civil War (1987). A second nomination followed for Mother Trucker: The Diana Kilmury Story (1996), but it was in 1998 that he won his first Gemini award, for Major Crime (1997). Also in 1998, Campbell landed the title role in Da Vinci's Inquest, a series about a hands-on, crime-solving Vancouver coroner. The show quickly became immensely popular in Canada and Nicholas received four Gemini nominations over the years, winning in 2001 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role. As well, Campbell was voted Canada's favorite male dramatic star in a TV Guide reader poll and was the only Canadian star to make the Top 5 dramatic actors list in a TV Times' readers' poll.

During his time off from the series he keeps busy with appearances in TV movies, independent films such as Siblings (2005) and Hollywood blockbusters such as Cinderella Man (2005) opposite Russell Crowe. He has also tried his hand at directing, first starting with episodes of his series Diamonds, and moving on to writing and directing the documentary Stepping Razor: Red X (1992), about the murder of Peter Tosh, which received a Genie nomination for Best Documentary. For his directing work on Da Vinci's Inquest, Campbell was honored with a Directors Guild of Canada nomination. He has also won a Gemini for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading role in 1988 for his work in CBC's Major Crime and in 2001 for his guest performance on the drama series Blue Murder.